• You Will Need:
  • 3 or 4 Clean Tin Cans
  • Sugar, Flour and Eggs
  • Baking Soda, Salt, Butter, and Hot Water
  • Raisins and Nuts

Today I’m taking a little trip down memory lane.

It all started a few weeks ago when I saw something on Pinterest about baking in tin cans instead of using ordinary pans.   I read a little further and smiled because it was as if they had discovered something brand new.  Recycle!  Re-purpose!  And make cute cakes too!

Oh gosh.  What would my grandmothers think?

I don’t think either of my grandmothers baked quick breads in anything but tin cans for many years.  It was something they started doing during the depression and just kept on doing it.  Visiting a grandma usually meant having a piece of brown bread . . . and it was always round.  Always.

Because that’s how bread looks when it come out of a tin can .  :)

 

homemade brown bread

So for old time’s sake I made my grandmother’s brown bread recipe in tin cans today.  My mother used this method a lot too so having nice little circles of brown bread to eat this week will bring back lots of fond memories.

brown bread cans So remember . . . if you want to make some small loaves of a quick bread and don’t have any small pans, you can always Make Your Own pans simply by recycling some clean tin cans.  Use cans from things that come in an approximate 14 oz size like diced tomatoes or beans.  Cans from soup or vegetables work good too.

Just make sure you’re very careful when cleaning out the cans to be aware of any sharp edges that might be around the rim.

 

GRANDMA’S BROWN BREAD IN TIN CANS

You Will Need:

  • 3 or 4 tin cans – tops removed, labels removed, and washed

  • 1 cup sugar

  • 1-1/2 cup raisins

  • 2 teaspoons baking soda

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • 1 tablespoon butter or margarine

  • 1-1/2 cups very hot water

  • 2 cups flour

  • 1 egg

  • 1 cup chopped nuts

1.  Place the sugar, raisins, baking soda, salt, and butter in a large mixing bowl.  Pour the hot water over everything in the bowl.

2.  Let the mixture set for about a half an hour to let the raisins plump up.

3.  Next add the flour, egg, and nuts to the bowl and stir until everything is well mixed.

4.  Spray the inside of your clean tin cans generously with cooking spray.  You can also grease the pans with butter or crisco, but be careful sticking your hands inside the cans in case there are any sharp edges.

5.  Spoon the batter into the tin cans.  I used three cans and filled them about three quarters full.  You could also use four cans and fill them about half full for smaller loaves.

6.  Put the cans on a baking sheet (in case anything bubbles over).

7.  Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes.  The bread will rise up out of the can a little bit.

brown bread in cans

8.  Once the cans are removed from the oven, let them cool for about an hour.

9.  To remove the bread, turn the cans over and give them a little shake and the bread should slip right out.

 

 

Print Friendly